Rose's Christmas
by BlueKittyGal
Summary: She's never seen snow before, living in the desert. How can Ed and Al show her? [EdxRose][Oneshot][AU]


_12/13_

_Dear Diary,_

_I got a letter from Edward today. He's in East City, getting ready to make a trip back to his home town for Christmas. He told me all about Christmas from when he was little, and it sounded so nice. He kept mentioning snow. I've never seen snow before, but from how he described it, it sounds beautiful._

_After writing a letter in response, I went around the plaza and hung up lights. Christmas is closing in on me and I don't have all of my decorations up yet. I'm still curious about this snow Ed mentioned. I asked him about it in the letter. I hope he responds soon._

_12/17_

_Dear Diary,_

_I'm still waiting for Edward's letter. I hope he got mine, and that he hasn't forgotten about it. I've finished decorating now and can't wait for Christmas. All of the stations on the radio are playing beautiful carols and songs. It was nice and cool today, going down to seventy-two._

Rose finished her latest diary entry, placing her bookmark on the page she had just finished. It was night now, and the Christmas lights were shining brightly through her window until she closed the curtain before going to bed. She had hoped to find a letter from Edward today, but there was nothing at the post office for her. She knew it was too early to expect him to have written back, but her curiosity about snow had made her hope.

The morning sun streaked the sky as Rose made her way to the post office. Maybe today was more realistic in hoping to find a letter from Ed. As she approached the door, a cab pulled up to let it's passengers out. It was unusual for guests to be dropped off at the post office. Rose shrugged and walked inside. She greeted the woman behind the counter with a friendly nod.

"Sorry Rose," The woman said kindly. "There's still nothing here from Mr. Elric." Rose sighed. Oh well, she thought, maybe tomorrow. "But you did get a package." Rose took the small package and looked at it. There was no return address, only a note scrawled in marker saying "Do not open till December 25th" and a fragile sticker.

"I wonder who it's from…" She wondered out loud as the door behind her opened.

"Maybe you have a secret admirer." A voice emanated from the door. Rose spun around to see where it had come from. "Long time no see."

"Edward!" Rose squealed in excitement. "What are you doing here? I thought you would be in Resembool by now." Ed, followed by his younger brother Al, walked into the post office.

"We came to surprise you." Ed smiled. "And judging by the look on your face we succeeded. Now…" Ed reached out and grabbed Rose's hand, placing something in it.

"What's this?" She asked. Looking at it, she saw it was a ticket. "A train ticket?"

"That's right. When I got your letter and realized you'd never seen snow before, I made some arrangements with some friends back home and decided to take you with us." Ed smiled.

"Even though his original plan was to bring the snow to you…" Al teased, noticing the thermometer on the wall reading in the 70's. Ed blushed.

"Shut up Al, you know I was only half awake when I said that!" Ed flustered out in embarrassment. Rose giggled.

"This is such a surprise; I don't know what to say!" She said, unable to keep from smiling.

"Just say you can be packed by tomorrow." Ed said as he turned to leave. "That's when the cab is going to take us back to East City. From there we take the train to Resembool."

_12/18_

_Dear Diary,_

_I got the most wonderful surprise today. I went to the post office to check for mail from the Elrics, and instead they went there to find me! I was so surprised, when they handed me a train ticket I nearly couldn't speak. They've made arrangements for me to stay with a friend of theirs, a girl named Winry, back in their hometown! They said it was expected to snow around Christmas, and they wanted to take me with them so I could see it. We leave for East City tomorrow morning._

_I also got a package today. I have no idea who it's from, only that it's fragile._

Rose set her diary on top of her travel bag. Every time something she wanted to remember happened, she wrote it down in hopes that the memory would never fade. Turning out her light, she climbed into bed, thoughts of the next day making her shake in anticipation of the next day.

When morning came, Rose found herself too excited to sit still and immediately began her last-minute inspection of her travel bag. "Toothbrush, check. Clean clothing, check. PJs check…" She rambled off, making sure not to forget anything. "And lastly, my package." She muttered, placing her mystery package into the bag. "If I'm going to spend Christmas away, I'll need to bring this with me so I can open it." Zipping her bag, Rose proceeded to her morning routine. By the time she had dressed and eaten, she barely had time to grab her bag before the cab pulled up to take her and the Elrics, who were already in the back seat (Edward was fast asleep), to East City. Rose put her bag in the trunk with Ed's and got in the back. The cab was fairly large; it had to be for Al to fit into it; so Rose had plenty of room to stretch out if she got tired.

By the time the cab had reached East City, it was late in the night. The three passengers retrieved their luggage and headed for the, to their relief nearby, military hotel where they spent the night before boarding the train in the morning.

_12/20_

_Dear Diary,_

_I'm currently on a train with Ed and Al. We're the only ones in the car right now, but Ed said more people will get on at the next stop, which is going to be in about four hours. He said there are only two stops before we reach Resembool. It's hard to believe he and Al have traveled so far that they even met me in the first place, much less gone to such lengths to bring me to visit with them over Christmas. I'll write more at the next stop. I feel a nap attack coming on._

_I'm back. Edward was right, more people did get on at this stop. It'll be lunch soon, and I can't wait. I'm starving. Maybe I should've packed a sandwich. Anyway, I found out the next stop is Central. We'll be losing all the other passengers there, and then it'll be Resembool's stop, where we get off. Ed tells me we should get there tomorrow morning. Oh, here comes the lunch cart. I'll write more when we reach Central._

_We're at Central now. It's late. I think Ed's almost asleep in his seat. Poor Al. I wonder what he does all night while everyone else sleeps. I guess only he knows that. The train station is very quiet at night. Almost everyone is off now, and no one has gotten on. I suppose we'll be pulling out in a couple minutes. It's hard to believe how cold it's gotten since we left Lior. I can see my breath on the window of the train! Good thing they have blankets under the seats. Speaking of which, I think Al is about to get one out for Ed. Those two really care a lot about each other. It makes me wish I had a brother or sister. But enough of that, the train is pulling out now. It's so bright in the city; I can't see any stars in the sky. I think I'll turn in now. Can't wait till morning!_

Rose finished her diary entry and tucked the small book back into her bag. She pulled a blanket out, laying down on the seat, and let the train rock her to sleep.

As the train pulled into the station the next morning, Al woke up his older brother. "We're here!" He said excitedly. Ed slowly began to stir.

"Here… Oh, we're here!" He said, jumping out of his seat. Looking across the center aisle, he saw Rose still sleeping. "Shhh!" He held his finger up to signal to keep quiet. He pulled the blanket off the sleeping girl and wrapped his own red coat over her bare shoulders. He had forgotten that she wouldn't have any long-sleeved outfits since she lived in the desert. Picking her up, Al carried her outside. When they got onto the platform, Ed and Al saw just what they hoped for- a blanket of deep, white snow. "C'mon, lay her down over here on the bench." Ed whispered.

"Okay" Al said quietly, laying Rose on the cold metal bench. She immediately opened her eyes and sat up, obviously startled.

"Cold!!" She yelped. She looked around. "Wait… Where are we?" She asked in awe. Her eyes went straight to the powdery wonderland that lay beyond the platform. The glistening white flakes sparkled brightly in the morning sunlight, making it hard not to squint. Edward helped her to her feet.

"This," He said, "is Resembool." Rose looked curiously at him.

"You grew up _here_?" She asked. "It's so beautiful!" The cold air didn't seem to affect her awestruck attitude at all as they began the walk to the Rockbell's, but by the time they were there, she was nearly clinging to Ed's arm for warmth. A black dog approached the small group, sniffing madly at Rose's hand.

"Hey there, Den." Ed said, patting the canine's head. Den barked in return, alerting those inside of the visitors. The three were soon greeted by Pinako and Winry Rockbell.

"Hey Ed, Al!" Winry said, hugging them both. She looked at Rose, who looked like she was about to turn into an icicle. "You must be Rose. Ed and Al tell me you're from a desert village called Lior, right?" Rose nodded. "You poor thing, you look like you're about to freeze to death. Come on inside, Granny just made hot chocolate." Winry led them inside and into a cozy room where a tree was brightly lit with glass ornaments dangling from its branches. Ed and Al sat down on a couch, leaving their suitcase and Rose's bag by the door. Rose took a seat closer to the tree as she studied the intricate designs on the ornaments.

"What do you think?" Ed asked her. Rose smiled.

"I think this is wonderful. Thank you so much for bringing me here. I don't know how I could ever repay you for showing me this part of God's creation." Rose almost looked teary for a moment before Winry came in with a tray of mugs and cookies.

"You're welcome to stay as long as you like." Winry said happily. "You can stay in my room. Granny and I brought a mattress up for you to sleep on, and while you're here you can use some of my warmer clothing. I have a coat you can wear outside and Granny has some extra mittens. No use letting you freeze before you even throw your first snowball." Rose's eyes lit up.

"Snowball… In the letter Ed sent me he mentioned snowball fights. I would love to learn how to do that." She said. Ed laughed.

"Not much to learn. Just roll a ball in the snow and throw it!" Rose blushed at his laughing, realizing just how little she really knew about snow. "You know, we should go outside before the snow melts. We have a lot to show you, Rose." The two boys stood up, going over to the door. "Winry, we'll be taking some carrots with us. You get Rose ready and we'll meet you out there." Winry nodded to show she heard them and led Rose upstairs with her bag.

"Here we go. This is my room. Your bed is over there, and the bathroom is just down the hall if you need to freshen up." Winry said, pointing to each thing as she mentioned it. "I left some clothes on your bed. They should fit you; you look about the same size as me. When you're ready to go outside I'll be downstairs." She said the last part of that as she closed the door.

Once Rose was done changing, she went down where Winry was and put on the coat and mittens left out for her. "Alright, let's go out there and have some fun!" Winry said loudly. She opened the door, letting Rose out first, then closed it behind herself. At first, Rose didn't see Ed or Al, but they soon came out from the other side of the building.

"Over here!" Al signaled with his arm. The girls walked around the corner to be greeted by a snowman, complete with carrot nose and Al's loincloth. Rose giggled at the strange-looking thing before her as Edward stepped out from behind it.

"This is a snowman." He said, putting his hand on its head. "Usually they have arms but I couldn't find any sticks."

"It's funny looking." Rose smiled. Winry laughed from behind her.

"Especially with Al's loincloth on it; it looks like an apron!" Ed scooped up a handful of snow.

"You'd look funny if you were made of snow too." He said, squishing the snow into a ball and hurling it at Winry. The snowball hit Winry's shoulder, disintegrating into millions of flakes. Rose stared wide-eyed.

"Why did you do that?" She asked. Winry laughed.

"That's what a snowball fight is; throwing snowballs back and forth trying to hit each other. It doesn't hurt unless the snow gets icy." She scooped up her own snowball and threw it back at Ed, who caught it and threw it at Rose. It hit her right in the face and for a minute he was afraid she was mad, until she wiped it off and threw a snowball at him. Her snowball hit his chest, and Ed retaliated with a larger snowball that Rose dodged with a laugh. Al and Winry soon joined in, and in a few seconds the snowman turned into a shield.

When the fight was over, they all stood panting, their breath making puffs of "smoke" in the chilly air. When they had regained their breath, Ed led Rose to a clean patch of snow and pushed her down in it. "Hey, why did you push me?" She asked. Ed laid down a few feet away.

"Just do what I do." He said, and he began to do what looked like jumping jacks in the snow. A little confused, Rose did the same. After Ed felt it had been long enough, he stood up and helped Rose to her feet. Spinning her around, he said, "Look, we just made snow angels." Rose realized why they had been flailing around so crazily in the snow when she saw the angels left where they had just been.

"Oh my…" She murmured. "All they're missing are halos." Ed smiled, getting on his knees, and drew a halo in the snow above his angel. Rose did the same, thoroughly content and welling with joy.

By the time they went inside, they had completely missed lunch and went straight to the table for dinner. They were all cold, wet and most of all, very happy.

_12/22_

_Dear Diary,_

_Today Al showed me around the village. I met a lot of very nice people, including another girl my age named Nellie. He showed me the river he, Ed and Winry used to explore when they were children. He also showed me where his house used to be. He told me he and Ed burned it down so they wouldn't be tempted to give up on trying to restore their bodies by having a place to return to. I felt like crying as he walked through the ashes telling me where everything had been._

_12/23_

_Dear Diary,_

_The last of the snow melted today. I was sad when it was gone, because the angels had melted too. Ed and Al's snowman is still there, but it's only a couple of feet tall now. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve. I feel bad that I have nothing to put under the tree for Ed, Al and Winry, after how kind they've been to me. If there really is a Santa, maybe he'll bring them something extra nice for their kindness. Speaking of gifts, I still don't have any ideas who the mystery package is from. I wonder if there's a note inside. I'll have to wait until Christmas to find out, I suppose._

_12/24_

_Dear Diary,_

_It's Christmas Eve! I can't believe how quickly the time has gone by. And it's the most wonderful thing! It snowed today! I saw it SNOWING!! It was so beautiful! After I went inside, Al helped Winry hang something from the door frame. It looked very festive with a red ribbon tied on it. I wonder what it's for. _

_I put my mystery package under the tree before coming up for bed. Winry is playing Santa for Ed and Al, since they're in their room now. I can't wait to see what she got them. I'm betting one of them is a gag gift, since she couldn't stop laughing while she wrapped it._

When Rose woke up in the morning, she noticed Winry was already frantically searching for her slippers. "Merry Christmas, Winry!" She said happily, bouncing up to help with the search. After Winry had her slippers on, they ran downstairs, being chased by Ed and Al, to find Pinako already by the tree. Winry was the first to get there, handing a package to Ed, one to Al and grabbing one with her name on it. Rose looked under the tree for the package she had placed under it and found it next to another package; this one wrapped and labeled "To Rose, From Winry". She opened the one from Winry first. Inside was a picture frame. Winry noticed she had opened it.

"I had Granny take a picture of us in the snowball fight when you weren't looking. We're getting it developed tomorrow." She said. Rose hugged her in thanks, being careful not to get hurt by the new wrench Winry had unwrapped. She looked at what Ed and Al had gotten. Al had a stuffed kitten and some armor polish and Ed had gotten a scarf with the flamel of the snake on the cross embroidered on it and some oil for his automail. Rose opened her mystery package as Pinako stuffed the new pipe she got from Winry and Den chewed a large bone with a bow on it. Inside the package was a second, this time wrapped, package. She unwrapped it and opened the box. Pushing aside some tissue paper and unrolling bubble wrap, she pulled out a glass snow globe. The base of the snow globe had been painted with beautiful Christmas ornaments and holly; the inside of the globe had a scene of a snow-covered cottage with a Christmas tree out front and a snowman in the back. Everyone was watching as she turned it upside-down to let the "snow" swirl when she saw a small note taped to the bottom, next to a key to wind a music box that was in the base of the snow globe. Rose took the note off, setting the snow globe down next to her. As she read the note, Ed wound the music box and a sweet Christmas melody tinkled from it.

"What does it say?" Winry asked. Rose looked up from the note and handed it to her. "'Merry Christmas, Rose. Now you can have snow with you everywhere you go, even in the summer time. From," Winry paused. Al leaned over her shoulder to look.

"It says, 'From, Edward Elric'." Ed said with a devious grin. He looked at Rose. "Merry Christmas," Rose looked close to tears.

"Merry Christmas, Ed," She whispered back, hugging him tightly. Ed blushed, but didn't mind the hug.

"Hey look!" Al said, pointing out the window. "It's snowing again!" They all rushed to the door to see the scene on that white Christmas morning, as large flakes fell on their faces. Winry stepped outside, and Al went out with her.

"Rose," Edward whispered. Rose looked at him. "Look up." Hanging from the doorframe was the festive-looking thing she had seen Winry putting up before, only this time she could tell what it was. Ed put his arms around her, pulling her in for a kiss under the mistletoe. As they pulled away from each other, Ed whispered in her ear, "Didn't I tell you you had a secret admirer?"

_12/25_

_Dear Diary,_

_This was the most wonderful Christmas I had ever had. My mystery package turned out to be a beautiful snow globe from Edward. Winry gave me a picture frame and Ms. Pinako is going to give me a picture for it from the snowball fight. After we opened our gifts, it began to snow. We all ran to the door to see, and the most magical thing happened. Edward kissed me under the mistletoe! Then he told me he was my secret admirer, but now it isn't secret. I'll be so sad when I leave Resembool, but I've promised to come visit everyone again. I'll be staying until the end of the week, but then I have to get back to Lior. Ed and Al have offered to take me back. After this morning I might just take them up on it._


End file.
